What if you were kidnapped to a magical college for the most dangerous magical criminals?

About the Book:

Title: The Library at Hellebore
Genre(s): Horror/Dark Academia
Author: Cassandra Khaw
Published by: Macmillan Audio
Date Published: July 22, 2025
Format Read: AudioBook
Where I Got It: NetGalley gave me a copy of this book.
Stand alone or series Number: It is a stand alone book.
This book is a must read if you like: Dark academia, nonstop action, unique magic systems, and awesomely grotesque monsters.

Snapshot: what do you need to know before you pick up the book.

For adults only.
Profanity: Adult language.
Intimacy: Mentions of Sexual violence.
Violence: Gore, violence.
Themes: Dark Academia.

My Thoughts

For adults only. This book is extremely dark with lots of gore, fight scenes, and dark emotional themes.

This was a bit too heavy on the gore for me. Also, the back and forth between history and present was a struggle for me in the audiobook.

This book has some beautiful language, stunning descriptions, and thought provoking themes. I loved Alessa and her journey (in spite of her best efforts to not have one).

I wish I could experience this book in chronological order. I think I would have been more engaged. The narration was well done.

Overall this book was a bit too dark for me, but undeniably well written. If dark academia is your vibe, if you don’t mind lots of graphic descriptions of bodies unraveling, this is a phenomenal book.

Publisher’s Description

The Hellebore Technical Institute for the Gifted is the premier academy for the dangerously powerful: the Anti-Christs and Ragnaroks, the world-eaters and apocalypse-makers.

Hellebore promises redemption, acceptance, and a normal life after graduation. At least, that’s what Alessa Li is told after she’s kidnapped and forcibly enrolled.

But the Institute is more than just a haven for monsters. On graduation day, the faculty embark on a ravenous rampage, feasting on their students. Trapped in the school’s cavernous library, Alessa and her surviving classmates must do something they were never taught: work together.

If they don’t, this school will eat them alive…

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